Starting this week, the New York Stock Exchange trading hours were set from 11:30 AM to 6:00 PM Buenos Aires time, so clearing and settlement agents (ALyC) recommend that investors exercise caution when trading CEDEARs, considering the difference in quotations between the two markets. This does not mean that Wall Street has changed its opening and closing times, but rather that the US time zone has been moved one hour forward as of today, making the time difference with Argentina two hours less. As of 2 AM on Sunday, November 2nd, US Daylight Saving Time officially ended, and clocks were set back by one hour, meaning that on Monday, Argentina was left two hours behind. Smartphones in the Northern Country automatically updated their time, and many people chose to stay up 60 minutes longer, that is, to 'recover' the hour of sleep they lost during the winter change. This time gap will complicate the sense of opportunity for making purchases and sales in the global arena, because 10 AM in New York is 12 PM in Argentina, and coordination will require anticipating decisions. The eight new Argentine Cedears that have recently arrived present a huge challenge in this regard, as they belong to high-tech companies and new sectors, which increases their growth potential but also the risk. They are: Robinhood (HOOD), CoreWeave (CRVW), Oklo (OKLO), Rocket Lab (RKLB), Astera Labs (ALAB), AST SpaceMobi (ASTS), IREN (IREN), Ecolab (ECL), clearly aimed at aggressive profiles. Two bets stand out: Oklo, focused on a sector with enormous potential due to the future energy demand driven by artificial intelligence, and Rocket Lab, ideal for those who believe that the economic and technological future is also being played out in space.
Pending Bill In our country, the Chamber of Deputies had given preliminary approval to a bill that seeks to modify the time zone in Argentina, with 151 votes in favor, 66 against, and 8 abstentions. The initiative proposes to set the clocks back one hour across the entire national territory and move from the current UTC-3 time zone to UTC-4 during the winter period, i.e., to bring it closer to that of the US. However, 'the objective is to better synchronize the official time with solar time. This improves performance and optimizes the use of natural light,' as highlighted by the project's author, Julio Cobos, from his official X account. In practice, it would mean that sunrise and sunset would occur one hour earlier relative to the current official time: for example, if sunrise is at 7:30, with the new schedule it would be at 6:30. However, almost three months have passed and the Senate has not addressed it, which means the American measure has further widened the gap.
Two Time Schemes The initiative approved by the lower house proposes the adoption of two time schemes throughout the year. One would be in effect from April to August and the other from September to March. If the law is approved in the Senate, on April 1, 2026, Argentines would have to set their clocks back one hour. Then, in September, they would have to move them forward again.
Two Time Zones Argentina joined the UTC-4 time zone in 1920. This -4 zone covers most of the national territory, with a western strip (the mountainous area) falling in the -5 zone. In 1930, it was decided to start alternating the -4 zone with a summer time in the -3 zone, with the aim of making better use of natural light during the earlier summer sunrises. This alternation was abandoned in 1970, and the time was mistakenly left at -3, according to a Conicet study cited in the project.
The project presented by Cobos cites a report by Andrea Pattini, a researcher at the Institute of Environment, Habitat, and Energy. The work explains that Argentina is currently not in the time zone that corresponds to its geographical location according to solar time. According to Pattini, solar time is a measure of time based on the apparent movement of the Sun over the horizon. It takes as a reference the moment when the Sun passes the meridian, its highest point in the sky, called noon (12 o'clock). Currently, Argentina is governed by a time zone (UTC-3) that does not correspond to its natural geographical location. This desynchronization between the Official Time and solar time generates multiple consequences for the daily life of the population, including the start of activities at night, less use of natural light, and an increase in electricity consumption. Furthermore, it negatively impacts people's health and well-being by altering the functioning of circadian rhythms.
24 Time Zones There are 24 time zones on the planet, which in turn determine 24 different time zones. By sharing the same time, the official time of each point on the territory does not exactly coincide with its solar time. However, for the difference to be as small as possible, it has been decided to use the mean solar time of each time zone. This way, no point in the time zone is more than 30 minutes away from its solar time.
